Terrorists belonging to the jihadist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) launched a surprise attack in Syria that killed 200 people, Israeli media reported early Friday morning.
HTS forces blocked the main road from Damascus to Aleppo. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights report found that the attack killed 102 HTS fighters, 19 members of allied groups, 61 from the Syrian regime forces and their supporters, and 20 civilians.
The civilians were reportedly killed during joint operations between the Russian and Syrian militaries.
HTS evolved from al-Qa‘ida’s former branch in Syria, the Nusrah Front.